Rail funding revives plan for Raleigh terminal

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Raleigh, N.C. — The $545 million in federal funding that North Carolina won Thursday for a high-speed rail corridor has breathed new life into Raleigh's long-held plans to create a transportation hub downtown.

City leaders want to create Raleigh's own version of New York's Grand Central Terminal near the corner of Glenwood Avenue and Morgan Street.

"We could use a facility where Amtrak and Greyhound were in one building," said Michael Byrd, who boarded a Greyhound bus Friday at the carrier's depot on West Jones Street.

The bus station used by Capital Area Transit and Triangle Transit is in Moore Square on the other side of downtown, while the Amtrak station is off West Cabarrus Street – several blocks from either bus depot.

Raleigh has wanted to combine the terminals for years but doesn't have funding for the project, which would cost an estimated $200 million. City Planning Director Mitchell Silver said Friday that having a high-speed rail line across North Carolina could put plans for a downtown transportation hub back on track.

About $520 million of the federal economic stimulus money North Carolina will receive is earmarked for track upgrades between Raleigh and Charlotte, which would increase the top speed of passenger train to 90 mph – they now average 46 to 48 mph – and double the number of round trips between the state's two largest cities.

The remaining $25 million would fund North Carolina's portion of rail improvements between Raleigh and Richmond, Va.

"If you have a high-speed rail, you want to have a state-of-the-art station. This really puts the likelihood of this station being built sooner rather than later," Silver said.

Officials plan to release results of a study of the proposed transportation hub and renderings of what it might look like next month.

Silver said the federal government could pick up much of the tab for the facility, or the city could partner with a private business.

"To have a multi-modal (center), you need a large facility. With high-speed (rail) and Amtrak, it's vital for cities of the future," he said. "Once that facility is built, it will create another location downtown. It's not just about the station but what could happen around the station."

Byrd said he thinks a downtown transportation hub is worth the investment.

"A lot of people travel out of (the Greyhound depot) and Amtrak, so I think it would be worth the money," he said.

haggis basherFeb 1, 2010

People have to walk to the train in the rain with umbrellas cause Caryites built the depot backwards so the prettiest side would be facing its downtown area."

you have a source for that gem of info? As far as I can see the depot is in the middle of the space between the two tracks, so both are equally served. The line on the north side goes to Charlotte and on the south side to the south. The gap is too big for a single depot building to be close to both.

AdelintheJan 29, 2010

Wonder if any of the money is going to go to educating the leaders in Cary as to what the front side and the back side of a building is and which side is to be facing the tracks being used by its customers.

People have to walk to the train in the rain with umbrellas cause Caryites built the depot backwards so the prettiest side would be facing its downtown area.

And with high speed rail, you're not going to have time to fiddle with an umbrella when you have to hurry on and off the train before it starts up again.